The Story Group

For its Story Organic Chicken

Our judges said, "Very tasty, very flavoursome, nice skin."

The Story Organic Chickens are a traditional breed, that range well and are particularly suited to organic production. They are grown from organic chicks, produced in a dedicated organic hatchery. They love to be outdoors even in the rain, exercising and eating lush, clover rich grass.

The breed has been selected for slow growth, complying with the Soil Association requirement for a maximum growth rate of 35g/day. The slowness of growth means that these birds have good leg strength, and hence good gait, and do not suffer from the production diseases associated with industrial broilers.

With the slow growth for welfare reasons also comes excellent eating quality with the flesh being firm and with a mild gamey taste.

The Birds are brooded in the field, in small houses up to a maximum of 500 birds; they are let out onto a red clover or ryegrass range around day 21, where they are given a mix of artificial and natural cover.

The Story Group have their own slaughtering facilities, which allows for the period between catching and slaughtering to be minimised. Birds are caught at approximately 8am and the first birds are slaughtered by 10am, with a maximum time in the lairage of 4 hours.

The birds are either sold fresh with no hanging or they are hung for up to one week depending on the customer's requirements, this builds on the gamey flavour producing a medium to strong influence. Birds are sold whole or in portions. The Story Group encourage their customers to have the carcass for the production of great tasting stock to use as a base for soups or sauces.

Roast Chicken in Milk

A strange combination but a really fantastic one that must be tried and makes the best chicken gravy.

Serves 4

Ingredients

1.5kg or larger Organic Chicken

Salt and ground black pepper

115g or ½ pack of butter

Olive oil

½ a cinnamon stick

1 good handful of sage, leaves picked

Zest of 2 lemons

10 cloves of garlic, skin left on

565ml / 1 pint of milk

Method

Preheat the oven to 190°C/Gas mark 5, and find a snug-fitting pot for the chicken. Season generously all over, and fry it in the butter and a little olive oil, turning the chicken to get an even colour all over until golden. Remove from the heat and put the chicken on a plate and throw away the butter and oil in the pot. This will leave you with a sticky goodness at the bottom of the pan.

Put the chicken back in the pan with the rest of the ingredients, and cook in the preheated oven for 1½ hours. Baste with the cooking juice when you remember. The lemon zest will split the milk, making a sauce which is fantastic.

To serve, allow to rest and pull the meat off the bones and divide it onto plates. Spoon over plenty of the juice and the little curds. Serve with wilted spinach or greens and mash potato.